Group determined to inspire 'strong' women with performance

A group of Liverpool dancers collaborated to explore themes that impact women.

Talisha Thomas-Lindsay, a professional dance creative, collaborated with Abisola Ali and Megan Frazer to produce a piece of spoken word and dance entitled Until... It’s part of the Leap Dance Festival (April 26 and runs until May 10) showcasing established local artists and companies who perform alongside young people and community groups, in a range of dance styles.

Talisha, from Chesterfield, who moved to Liverpool aged 11, is the director of newly formed TMC Collective 24 (TMC). Commissioned by Culture Liverpool, Until… will be at The Unity Theatre on May 8 and will explore 'Womanhood', encompassing the thoughts and topics surrounding women’s lives.

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Talisha told the ECHO: "TMC’s debut performance piece is about the universal theme of womanhood. The title came through talking about issues women go through; not appreciating where they are at the time and constantly thinking about the next thing.

"I do a motif, I say; until I get the money, until I have the time, until I have the baby, until I get married. Always these untils we have in our head and not quite enjoying the present, just thinking about the next thing because of societal pressures.

"Until… is a spoken word piece mixed with dance. We’ve created a piece on the themes of strength, internal struggle and hyper-femininity and these things are what we chase; one chases strength, one internal struggle and one chases hyper-femininity, because they’re the things that relate to us (women) at this moment in time.

"Hyper-femininity is being overtly feminine. Sometimes that can come from wanting to please the male gaze, also being in competition with other women".

The group created spoken word and dance pieces to express the three themes. Talisha, Abisola and Megan are all trained in various dance styles; afro, contemporary, commercial, jazz, and hip-hop which influenced their choreography enabling them to develop and create a dynamic and powerful performance piece.

Talisha said: "It happened organically. I didn’t go into the studio with a set idea, because I didn't want us to have that pressure. I wanted what we created to be something that was honest.

"I want the audience to be able to feel a sense of comfort, to understand we all go through these things but can come out of them. I think the world we’re living in now (consists of) the pressures of social media, of supposedly being where you should be at certain ages, societal, cultural and traditional pressures.

"I want a catalyst for discussion, debate and self-reflection. The situation you might be in is not going to last forever, there’s always going to be a next chapter to show even though we go through all these things there's always the next thing that’s coming along, and to have the strength to get through what you're going through.

"A lot of women will relate to this theme in some way or another. Also, men have their own pressures and they see their family go through certain things as well".

Collaborative partner Megan said: "I've had a great experience taking part in the first TMC project. I've enjoyed sharing our individual experiences and dance training.

"We've learnt from each other, refined and pushed our artistry individually and collectively. Creating a piece focused on exploring the theme of Womanhood opened up conversation sharing, personal experiences revealing the universal and nuanced experiences we each have within this topic.

"I think the audience will be able to identify, relate and find a part of themselves within our performance piece".

Abisola added: "I'm excited to take part in TMC's first performance. The Collective is something new and fresh for the Liverpool and North West dance scene.

"I've known these beautiful women for a while and it's a full circle moment to be working with them again on this piece. I've enjoyed the collaborative process and looking forward to the performance night. There will be more to come in future, so stay tuned".

Talisha studies include; a BTEC National Diploma in Dance, a Dance Studies Degree and a PGCE teacher qualification. Through dancing she’s visited Belgium, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

She’s been a judge in national dance competitions, modelled with performance and choreography credits including; JD Sports, Selfridges, Red Bull, Wannabe - Spice Girls UK tour theatre show and more.

TMC will have another performance of Until... at a date to be confirmed in July and they will begin teaching a range of dance classes; commercial, hip hop and afro dance starting in June 2024 at the Liverpool Arts Bar on Hope Street for ages 13 upwards.

For information visit TMC Collective 24 HERE

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